Ecuador's Police Regain Control Over Prison Recently Hit By Deadly Riots

MEXICO CITY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th October, 2021) The Ecuadorian police have regained control over a prison in the Ecuadorian city of Guayaquil, a site of riots between gangs that left at least 118 dead, police chief Tannya Varela, said.

"Based on the state of emergency, which allows the police and armed forces to be inside the penitentiary, the violence was brought under control," Varela said in a video published on Twitter.

During the operation in the Litoral prison, the police seized 13 firearms, including six automatic rifles and seven pistols, 1,136 rounds of various calibers, 250 knives, five grenades, 60 cell phones, and 6 kilograms (13 Pounds) of drugs.

The violence between criminal groups, which is a common occurrence in Ecuadorian prisons, erupted last week, killing 118 inmates and injuring 79 others, marking the record riot in Ecuador's penitentiary system in terms of the number of casualties.

The country's president, Guillermo Lasso, introduced a 60-day state of emergency in the prison system after consultations with senior officials. About 3,600 law enforcement officers were deployed to detention centers around Ecuador designed to lodge 29,000 prisoners in total.

However, according to the prison service, around 40,000 inmates are currently held in these facilities. In particular, there are over 8,000 inmates in the Litoral prison, designed for 5,000 prisoners.

To decongest the system, the authorities are planning to grant pardon to around 2,000 prisoners in a bid to relieve the workload of prisons.